How Crawl Space Encapsulation Can Increase Home Value
- December 4, 2020
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Any home improvement project you invest in should increase your home’s value. It’s not always the first consideration, but it is almost always one of the top five. Whether you’re looking at crawl space encapsulation because you have standing water under your home, have heard how it can reduce heating and cooling costs, or are concerned about negative effects of poor air quality, encapsulating your crawl space will definitely increase your home’s value.
Protects Your Home from Mold and Wood Rot
Crawl spaces can be wet and damp, which is a breeding ground for mold. Water can seep up through the ground, or through your foundation walls, then condensate on the wood subfloor and support beams inside your crawl space. That makes it easy for mold to grow and spread. The water vapor can also cause wood to rot and become unstable in the framing and subfloors of your home. You may have this kind of structural damage if your floors feel soft or are separating.
Crawl space encapsulation can include:
- Drainage for foundation seepage (if needed)
- Vapor barriers installed on the ground and walls
- A form of insulation up the walls
- A ventilation or humidity control device to maintain a dry healthy space
The benefits of crawl space encapsulation are not immediately obvious, but are very important.
Improves Indoor Air Quality
Crawl space encapsulation helps to prevent mold growth, which immediately improves your indoor air quality. Mold can cause serious heath problems. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), inhaling mold spores can cause allergic reactions in many people. Symptoms can include sneezing, runny nose, cough, red eyes, and a skin rash. For people with asthma, mold can trigger an asthma attack. Prolonged exposure can lead to sinus infections (sinusitis).
In addition to helping to prevent mold from growing, the continuous vapor barrier also acts as a barrier to radon, helping to reduce the radon levels in the air. By encapsulating your crawl space, you are consciously working to create a healthy home environment for your family. You can also use it as a selling point in the future.
Crawl space encapsulation systems require a ventilation or dehumidification device to manage the humidity and condition the space underneath of your home. You may not know that when you are upstairs, you are breathing the air that is under your home as well, so it is imperative that you take care of the air coming from the crawl space.
Reduces Energy Costs
While your health and the structural integrity of your home are critical, reduced energy costs is another benefit you can see and feel after crawl space encapsulation. The high humidity in an unconditioned, open, or vented crawl space creeps into your home making it harder for your HVAC system to achieve the comfort level you desire. When your HVAC system uses more energy, your utility bills rise.
By encapsulating the crawl space and adding a ventilation device or dehumidifier, you are actively managing the problem. As a bonus, you also end up with warmer floors in the winter. Home buyers today are looking for energy efficient homes. You can keep a record of your utility bills before and after crawl space encapsulation to show the difference it makes. Your electric company may also tell you how your home compares to other homes of the same size in your area. It’s always nice to get a report that you’re using less electricity than your neighbors.
In addition – you may qualify for a tax credit for energy efficiency improvements. Consult with your tax advisor.
Transferable Warranty Transfers Peace of Mind to the New Homeowner
You can’t really put a dollar value on peace of mind, but if you sell your home, having that transferable warranty on your crawl space drainage system will give peace of mind to the prospective buyer. Not every home in the Mid-Atlantic has a safe crawl space, so it puts you ahead of the competition. You won’t have to worry about road blocks during the home inspection process related to your sale.
Anyone who has ever lived in a home with a wet basement or damp crawl space will appreciate the work you’ve done. And if they’ve ever paid for crawl space encapsulation or basement waterproofing themselves, they will know how important it is.
By managing dampness and decreasing the humidity, crawl space encapsulation works to inhibit mold growth and deter wood rot in the crawl space, improve indoor air quality, and reduce energy costs. All of those make your home more comfortable for you, and more attractive to a potential buyer.
Schedule a Free Crawl Space Inspection
If you want to increase your home’s value as well as provide a healthy home for your family, schedule a free crawl space inspection. Value Dry Waterproofing offers this service for free to homeowners throughout Maryland and northern Virginia, the West Virginia panhandle, as well as Kent County and Sussex County in Delaware.
Our inspectors are thorough and honest. We’ll show you what we found, give you our recommendations to improve and condition your crawl space, and answer any questions you have. We offer competitive rates and superior products, and if you book with us, we can generally get the job done in one day.
Give us a call at (888) 768-2583 or fill out the online form and our office will get in contact with you to schedule a free inspection.